Editorial | Education blues

Public schools seem to be having a hard time in Kentucky and Indiana lately, what with budget cuts and the persistent efforts by some to undermine curriculum by sneaking in religious-based beliefs about creationism and "intelligent design."

Professional educators need to stand fast in their resolve to provide the most excellent, fact-based education possible to students, despite the vicissitudes of funding and politics.

And elected officials need to stand with them - unlike what just happened in Indiana, where the state legislature and Republican Gov. Mike Pence recently caved to political pressure and enacted a bill to suspend and review adoption of new, more rigorous academic standards.

The standards, known as Common Core, have been adopted by 46 states - Kentucky was the first - and represent a voluntary, state-led effort to come up with improved curriculum that better prepares students for college and careers.

The federal government has no involvement but that hasn't stop a growing chorus of critics from blasting it as a "federal takeover" of public education, also a talking point of health reform antagonists who have repeatedly and just as falsely called the Affordable Care Act a "government takeover" of health care.

Leading the anti-Common Core battle in Indiana was a group called "Hoosiers Against Common Core" which calls on citizens to "halt the push for federal and corporate takeover of our children's public school classrooms."

No matter that Mr. Pence's predecessor, former Gov. Mitch Daniels, also a Republican and now president of Indiana's Purdue University, was one of Common Core's staunchest supporters.

Mr. Pence, who took office this year and happily signed a bill passed by lawmakers to halt implementation of Common Core, said he wants to "hit the pause button" in order to evaluate a program Indiana already has evaluated.

It's hard to tell exactly why opponents really dislike Common Core, because they mask their opposition in vague claims that it takes away control by parents and local school boards (how?) and takes away power from teachers (again, how?).

But a few lawmakers in Kentucky tipped their hands last year during a discussion on Kentucky's efforts to dramatically upgrade its core curriculum in key areas including science and math. Several Republican members of the joint House-Senate Education Committee chimed in to wonder aloud why science classes teach only evolution.

They wanted to know why teachers can't introduce "intelligent design," a belief similar to creationism that the world was created by God or some supreme being.

One of those raising the question was state Sen. Mike Wilson, of Bowling Green, who has since been named chairman of the Senate Education Committee and bears close watching.

Former Rep. Carl Rollins, a Midway Democrat, set the record straight on creationism during the discussion.

Because unlike evolution, it's not science, but is a belief that should be reserved for religious studies, he said.

Mr. Rollins was chairman of the House Education Committee until he resigned to take a top job with the state Higher Education Assistance Authority last month. He was a voice of reason on education in the Kentucky General Assembly and will be missed.

Meanwhile, the creationism debate cropped up in Louisville last week when a meeting of the group "Louisville Area Christian Educator Support" met to discuss, among other things, whether teachers are allowed to teach creationism in public schools.

They are not and Jefferson County Public School Superintendent Donna Hargens promptly reminded all JCPS teachers and principals of that after a flurry of news reports about the meeting.

Jefferson County schools last week announced the layoffs of 41 teachers, the largest in a decade, because of budget problems. That follows news that $6 million in "sequestration" cuts will hit the school system this fall, mostly in programs that served poor, disabled and preschool children.

School officials need to hold firm to rigorous education standards and lawmakers need to give them money to do that job rather than meddling with curriculum.

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Editorial | Education blues

Public schools seem to be having a hard time in Kentucky and Indiana lately, what with budget cuts and the persistent efforts by some to undermine curriculum by sneaking in religious-based beliefs